


Visits

by Ibenholt



Category: Babylon 5
Genre: Childhood, Family, Family Drama, Family Fluff, Fluff, Illnesses, Original Character(s), Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-13
Updated: 2015-10-13
Packaged: 2018-04-26 04:00:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4989424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ibenholt/pseuds/Ibenholt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A glimpse into an afternoon in Londo's childhood.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Visits

“Londo? Londo!”

He looked up from the tall grass. Mama Chelia was running down the paved road from the house and to the large stone circle. She never ran unless it was important, so he stumbled out from the moss-covered ground, and up on the stones.

“There you are!”

She didn’t look angry until he stepped out completely, and it was too late to hide again.

“Oh, Londo…”

She sunk down to her knees in front of him, “I told you not to get dirty today! Look at this mess!”

She pulled out a handkerchief and licked it before running it in hard circles over his face. He had tried to be careful, he really had, but the shoes were so tight and uncomfortable, and his clothes felt too small. He grimaced while she fixed him up, but to no avail, 

“Why don’t you ever listen to me?”

“I’m sorry.”

She stopped when she brought his hand up for inspection. There was a clumsy bouquet full of golden, blue and red flowers in the muddy, little fist.

“How pretty.”

She smiled at him and straightened his vest,

“We don’t have the time to let you change. You’ll just have to come with me.”

He followed obediently, looking at how her skirt rustled as she moved. It was almost like she had no legs.  
As soon as they entered the house, he kicked his shoes off and put his slippers on. He couldn’t make the carpets dirty on top of everything else. Chelia had taken his hand, leading him to the main sitting room,

“Remember to be polite, Londo.”

The door opened, and she peeked in,

“Here he is, Veno.”

She pushed him in front of herself. Beles and Chintir were dressed in their finest and sitting by Mama Falis’ feet, playing with a glass drome and one of their dolls.  
To his shock, there was a stranger in the big chair by the bookshelf. They only ever had guests that they all knew, like uncles or aunts or grandparents on occasion.

“Isn’t he handsome? He’s growing so fast that we can barely keep up with him.”

Londo looked at the man again. He was grey, but his face wasn’t very old.

“Mama, who is that?”

Falis had been looking very bored until now. She smacked her lips, and looked to the man, whose eyes narrowed so much that they became tiny cracks in his face.

“Londo!!”

Chelia gaped at him. His sisters were looking back and forth between everyone in the room.

“It’s papa! I told you this morning that he was coming to visit.”

“Oh.” 

Londo bowed as deeply as he could. He couldn’t remember that she had told him anything other than to dress nicely. The man looked him up and down, making his long crest move. Londo’s hair had just been cut. They needed to make it thick so that it would stand better, 

“What’s in your hand?”

“Flowers.”

“Why is a boy your age pickings flowers? You should be playing with swords.”

“No, because you don’t play with swords, you wi-wield them. Mama Falis said so.”

Londo didn’t care if he hadn’t gotten the word right, Falis looked proud of him. He tugged at Chelia’s skirt,

“I want to go see mama.”

“Not now. And don’t’ talk to your father like that!” She hissed.

“Let him go.” The man said, waving one of his big hands,

“I’m not in the mood for children who talk back.”

“It’s not like him, Veno, I have no idea of what has gotten into him.”

“The flowers need water.” Londo mumbled. He didn’t like it when they talked over his head this way.

“It doesn’t matter.” He told Chelia, “Now I’ve seen him. He’s shorter than I’d expected and he has no manners.”

Falis’ goblet landed on the table between them with a ‘thud’, and she got up.

“It’s time for Neta’s medicine.” she said, nodding at Londo, “And Londo’s the only one who can make her take it. Since you’ve seen enough of him for today, I’ll take him.”

“I assume that by ‘Neta’ you mean ‘Lady Saneta’?”

“Your deducting skills take my breath away, Veno-dear.”

She said it in a silly way, pulling her shoulder up to her chin. She stepped over the girls, grabbed Londo’s hand from a shocked Falis, and led him out of the room.  
Once the door was closed, she picked him up so and rubbed her nose against his.

“Thank the Maker you came, Londo. The old man wouldn’t shut up!” He smiled. Chelia always said that Falis talked like a commoner, and didn’t even know what it meant to be polite. But she always said what she meant, and he liked that.

“And you’re absolutely right! Swords are for fighting, not for playing! But you wouldn’t expect that big dummy to know which end of the sword to grab, would you?”  
She winked and he started laughing again.

As they went down the corridor, Londo leaned in and whispered: “Why is he here?”

“The old man?”

“Yes.”

“He has to stop by now and then. We’re his family, you know.”

“But he’s never here.”

“He was here two years ago, after he married me. But we can’t really expect you to remember that, can we?”

They rounded the corner and arrived at the kitchen. One of the girls there had prepared a tray with food, medicine, as well as a goblet and a small bottle.  
She handed it to Falis, who thanked her before they moved on.

After climbing a pair of stairs and going through through a hall, they finally reached her door. She gave him gave him the tray.

“Don’t stay in there too long, or you’ll get dizzy. Come right down afterwards.”

She looked over her shoulder,

“Or play a little first. You’re a big boy now, you can decide.”

“Aren’t you going to be bored with papa?”  
She ruffled his hair, “Of course I will. But I’m an adult. I can take care of myself.”

She opened the door for him, and Londo snuck in. It clicked behind him while a wave of warmth and heavy air hit him. Mama needed it.   
He put the tray up on the closest table, grabbed the flower vase and walked over to the nightstand with it. She was asleep, buried underneath a ton of blankets. He went back to the table and picked up the medicine and the glass of brivari. It smelt bad, but they said it helped.  
Very carefully, he stroked her cheek. She grunted a little, and then she blinked.

“Hello, Londo.”

“Hello, mama.”

“Your brought me flowers.”

“Yes.” 

“How very pretty.”

She patted the bed, and he got in. 

“I feel better now.” She smiled.

“You have to take your medicine.”

She stuck her tongue a little, “But it tastes so nasty.”

“There’s brivari.”

“Is there, now. How thoughtful.”  
He picked them both up and handed it to her. She sat up, dragging her robe tightly around herself, and drank it down. Once she was finished, she made a face that was so odd   
that Londo started laughing.

“Are you really laughing at your poor sick mama, Londo? You little villain!”

She took the brivari cup from him and tickled him, “I’ll give you something to laugh about!”  
She gasped, suddenly, and began coughing. It lasted much longer than usual. She breathed heavily once it was over, and pinched the bridge of her nose,

“Maker… I hope the medicine will help this time.”

She emptied the cup, put it down, and grabbed Londo and pressed him against herself, 

“How lucky I am to have a son who takes so good care of me.”

She was so thin and cold. Londo could feel her bones. But she smelt like soap and her ash-cream, and he hugged her back.

“Papa is here.”

“Yes.”

“I don’t like him.”

“That’s not very nice of you, Londo.”

“He looks mean. And he said I shouldn’t pick flowers for you.”

She shivered and pulled the covers over herself, giving him the one with the yellow embroidery.

“Do you like him?”

“Of course I like him. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have you, you know.”

She grinned a little. Londo grinned back.

“But he isn’t fun at parties, you know. Not like you.”

“Can we have another soon, when you’re feeling better?”

“Of course! We are going to have a large party, with many guests and good food and drink. And you and I are going to dance all night.”

“Do you want me to plan it?”

She looked at him, smiling very softly this time.

“Oh, my sweet, you don’t have to. Besides, you should get down and stop Falis from saying something that will upset the big grump.”  
Londo laughed a bit, but he inched in a bit, 

“But I want you to sleep.”

“I will eventually, my darling.”

Londo didn’t care. With his softest voice, he began talking about the music that would play, the elegant tables full of food, and of course the guests they would invite. Mama’s eyes shut slowly, and she stopped answering him.

After a while, when he heard her snoring, he moved to slip out of her grip, but paused. There was no rush. Flower pickers or not, boys his age couldn’t just leave their mothers alone when they were sick. He rolled around, faced her, and closed his eyes, too.

**Author's Note:**

> Saneta is the first wife, but had Londo later. She's from an old, noble, but poor family.   
> Chelia is the second wife, and had Beles, who is the first born child in the family. Chintir was born only a short while after Londo. She comes from a very rich family with no noble blood, but good connections.   
> Falis is the most recent wife, also from a noble house, but hardly behaving like it.


End file.
